Porto Santo Island, Portugal

General Pereira d’Eça

The boom reverberated off Porto Santo’s dramatic coastline. A few onlookers jumped at the sound, surprised by a bang for which they had spent the past two hours waiting. A second boom rang out as a ball of fire shot skyward, a plume of dense smoke left in its wake. Shutters clicked and TV cameras rolled. A few people whooped and hollered. Several more bangs followed in quick succession, precisely laid dynamite detonating at timely intervals.

And then silence.

Fishing boats, dinghies and catamarans bobbed in the wind, the people on board watching on in quiet respect as the decommissioned Portuguese Navy corvette General Pereira d’Eça slipped beneath the surface.

For those involved creating Porto Santo’s newest artificial reef, it was the culmination of two years of hard work. The visibility was such that the the explosives team and commercial divers were able to immediately see that the vessel had settled on the seabed upright. Everything had gone according to plan. Nine-mile-long Porto Santo is a Portuguese island northeast of Madeira Island.

The 1,438-tonne, 279-foot General Pereira d’Eça corvette warship was built in 1970 and completed decades of active service. The scuttling was a collaborative effort between the Portuguese Navy, Madeira’s Promotion Association and the Ocean Revival Project, which has scuttled several warships off Portugal’s Algarve coast in the past few years.

Porto Santo’s newest dive site sits at a maximum depth of 100 feet, in year-round clear water, just a short distance from Porto Santo’s artificial reef, the wreck of the Madeirense.

Pompano Beach, Florida

Lady Luck

Type of Ship: Tanker

Length: 324 feet

Depth: 50-120 feet

Date Sunk: July 23

Experience Level: Beginner-Advanced

Related Reading: Florida Keys: A Wreck Wonderland for Divers

New Providence, Bahamas

Adrianna

Type of Ship: Freighter

Length: 100 feet

Depth: 50-60 feet

Date Sunk: April 8

Experience Level: Beginner

Related Reading: Getting Scuba Certified in the Florida Keys

Palm Beach, Florida

Ana Cecilia

Type of Ship: Freighter

Length: 170 feet

Depth: 50-87 feet

Date Sunk: July 13

Experience Level: Beginner-Advanced

Can't Get Enough Wrecks?

• The World's 50 Best Wrecks
• 14 Unforgettable Wrecks and How They Were Sunk
• Best Locations for Easy Wreck Diving